1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a recovery apparatus of an ink discharge part and an image forming apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an inkjet-type image forming apparatus has been known in which a nozzle surface forming multiple ejecting openings on an ejecting surface of a droplet discharge head of the inkjet discharge part is faced downward, and an ink droplet is dropped on a recording medium opposed to the nozzle surface from the multiple ejecting openings. In this inkjet-type image forming apparatus, an ink solvent is vaporized from the ejecting opening, an ink viscosity around the ejecting opening is increased, and foreign matter such as paper particles and dust are attached at the ejecting opening. Accordingly, clogging is occurred, and an ink ejection can not be normally performed, whereby a defective image may be caused.
Consequently, the following image forming apparatus has been known. An image forming apparatus includes a recovery apparatus which recovers an ink ejecting function by suctioning dust and the like attached to the ejecting opening with ink. The recovery apparatus includes a cap member to cover the nozzle surface from underneath. At an upper portion of the cap member, a concave space which opens upward is formed. The opening due to the concave space has the size to cover an area on which the multiple ejecting openings are formed on the nozzle surface. At a bottom portion of the concave space, which faces the nozzle surface through the opening, a suction hole is formed. The suction hole is connected to a suctioning pump as a suctioning part. Also, the recovery apparatus includes a contact-separation part which moves the cap member between a first location where an opening end face around the opening is adhered to the nozzle surface to seal the area and a second location where the cap member is moved away from the first location and the nozzle surface is released.
In order to recover the ink ejecting function by the recovery apparatus having the above-described configuration, in a state in which the opening edge face is coherent to the nozzle surface and the area is sealed, the air of an internal space formed by the nozzle surface and the concave space of the cap member is suctioned by the suctioning pump. The foreign matters such as the dust attached to the ejecting opening and the like are forcibly suctioned and ejected with the ink from the ejection opening, whereby the ink ejecting function is recovered.
In the above configuration, a recovery apparatus disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2007-144696 (hereinafter, called Patent Document 1) has been known. In an inkjet recording apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, a contact absorber and an elastic absorber are provided inside the concave space of the cap member to cohere the ejecting surface. The contact absorber is used to absorb ink on the ejecting surface by contacting the ejecting surface other than an area on which the ejecting opening is provided, when the opening edge face of the cap member is cohered to the ejecting surface to seal an internal portion of the cap member. The elastic absorber is used to apply pressure to the contact absorber so that the contact absorber is pressed with a moderate press contact force. In a state of being provided in the concave space of the cap member in a two layer structure layering these two absorbers, an upper surface of the contact absorber contacting the ejecting surface is ejected toward the ejecting surface from the opening edge face of the cap member and a face height difference exists.
When the internal portion of the cap member is sealed by making the opening edge surface of the cap member cohere to the ejecting surface, the contact absorber is pressed from the ejecting surface, and is pressed inside the cap member to pass a pushing force from the ejecting surface to the elastic absorber, due to the face height difference. Then, the contact absorber, which is provided at a location opposed to the ejecting surface other than the area on which the ejecting opening is provided, is pressed into contact with to the ejecting surface with a moderate press contact force by pressure from the elastic absorber which rebels the pushing force from the ejecting opening. Therefore, it is possible to prevent exceeding the press contact force for a contact between the ejecting surface and the contact absorber, whereby a contact surface is prevented from being damaged.
However, in Patent Document 1, when the cap member is cohered to the ejecting surface, it is required to press the contact absorber with the surface height difference inside the cap member. Also, it is required to successively press the cap member to the ejecting surface with a pushing force more than an elastic force of the elastic absorber. Furthermore, it is required to maintain this state until the ink and the like are suctioned and ejected. Due to a change over time in the above-described configuration, it becomes difficult to maintain and assure a sealed state, and the inside of the cap member can not be firmly sealed. Thus, there is a problem in which a suction defect is caused in a recovery process.